Disposable bibs for babies, and even adults, are known. However, prior art bibs generally have a circular neckline so their effective use is limited to a person with a certain neck size. If one of these circular neckline bibs is worn by a person with a different size neck than the neckline mandates, the bib will either not lie flat on the front of the wearer or the bib will not fit snugly around the wearer's neck.
Many prior art bibs also have pockets on the bottom to catch crumbs that fall while the wearer eats. To be effective, these pockets must be open; the disadvantage with these prior art pockets lies in their limited effectiveness. Known bib pockets fall into three general categories: pockets that do not stay open, pockets that stay open only because they are affixed to a distant object and pockets that stay open because of an elaborate and complex construction.
An understanding of certain of the prior art devices will make apparent the improvement of the present invention. The Asch U.S. Pat. No. 2,244,656 discloses a child's bib having a U-shaped neckline and a separate tape or string useful for affixing the bib to the wearer. The Doyle U.S. Pat. No. 2,424,680 discloses a continuous roll-type paper bib, having a semicircular cutout.
The Payant U.S. Pat. No. 2,803,574 discloses a napkin having a diamond-shaped adhesive element affixed to one side near a corner. A release agent is applied to a portion of an adjacent corner of the napkin. The Cooper U.S. Pat. No. 3,001,646 shows another continuous roll-type bib having a crumb-catching trough and a circular neck opening. A cohesive material is applied to portions of the bib. The Burnett U.S. Pat. No. 3,146,464 shows a continuous bib having a fold-up crumb-catching trough, a circular neck opening with patches of self-adhering adhesive near the neck, and tie strips to encircle the waist or upper body of the wearer.
The Straus U.S. Pat. No. 3,328,807 discloses a disposable bib, again having a fold-up crumb-catching trough and a circular neck opening with a self-sealing adhesive useful to attach the bib to the wearer.
The Farber et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,329,969 discloses a disposable flexible, absorbent material. The Marder et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,416,157 discloses a disposable bib having alternatively a U-shaped or circular neckline. A crumb-catching trough is also disclosed.
The Stemmer U.S. Pat. No. 3,488,773 discloses a dental towel having three adhesive patches affixed to the backside thereof, for attaching the dental towel to the wearer. The Orr U.S. Pat. No. 3,871,027 discloses a combination burp pad and bib having a semicircular neckline, and a plurality of self-adhering tabs.
The Johnson U.S. Pat. No. 3,995,321 discloses a disposable bib which includes a circular neckline, an absorbent cloth, and a crumb-catching trough which is affixed with adhesive strips to a table or other distant object.
The Hannigan U.S. Pat. No. 3,999,221 discloses a disposable bib having a one-piece construction and including elongated tie strips formed as a part of the bib construction. The Levitt U.S. Pat. No. 4,038,697 discloses a combination bed sheet and disposable smock or bib. The Ahr et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,441,212 discloses a bib having a funnel-shaped neckline and adhesive strips for forming a crumb-catching trough and affixing the bib to the wearer.